“Listening to the stories of Black Americans who were purposely failed by their own education systems, Asian Americans who faced assaults on their subway commutes, gay couples who were refused entrance in a church that ‘welcomes all’ — other people’s stories became the fuel for my passion for change.” — Though I was born in Seongnam, South Korea, my family’s move to the Pennsylvanian suburbs concealed my Korean identity for the next ten years of my life. Although I spoke Korean at home and my favorite gourmet meal consisted of rice with a side of gim and kimchi, spending my…

“America still is the land of immigrants and opportunity, and there will always be a need for people to bridge the gap of this multicultural society.” — My parents call themselves the 1.5 generation, a mixed breed of model minority Korean immigrant parents and a new generation of not-so-rule followers. In Korean, it is referred to as ilchom ose. This unique label belongs to the first-generation immigrants who immigrated to the new country before or during their…

“It seemed unfair to me that the future I am going to live in might be established without the reflection of my voice.” — Moving to New Jersey in July 2020, in the middle of the pandemic, I found that Asian hate crimes and violence were thriving in the United States. Great fear had conquered me since my family couldn’t speak English fluently enough to get ourselves out of those situations. We didn’t have…

“Not feeling connected to a community was a feeling that I experienced a lot growing up.” — Not feeling connected to a community was a feeling that I experienced a lot growing up. This was a combination of my family’s constant moves along with my dual identity as a Korean American. As a result, from an early age I had always wanted to change my environment. Rather…

“Being in that space allowed me to realize that my voice had value and power, and that the only way to bring on the change that I wanted to see in my community was to raise my voice.” — As someone who often felt distanced from politics and the Korean-American community, my experiences of KAGC has taught me the importance of stepping out of my bubble and using my voice as a force for change and justice.

“This piece is supposed to provide a bit of encouragement to fellow Korean-American kids out there like me, who may be angry but have no idea why or where to direct it.” — I think it’s natural for us humans to be angry. Angry at the world, with one another, and most of all at oneself; it is both an individual and collective emotional experience. Koreans are so well-versed in the art of anger that we have a special word for it: 한…

This reminds us that the U.S. is a single unified nation formed by many states, and as an extension, we are a country formed by people of different backgrounds. We seek unity in diversity. — In 1999, my parents immigrated to the United States from South Korea. The following year, I was born, and two years later, my younger sister was born. With the four of us, my parents planted a church in the suburbs of Virginia. …

Finding not only other undergraduate students who look like me and are invested in this specific field, but also adults who make it their livelihood to provide such a unique pipeline to the most powerful place in the country made me so gratuitous to KAGC. — Born and raised my entire twenty years of existence in the “Bergen bubble” of New Jersey simultaneously provided me with so much acceptance and foreignness. On a positive note, I never had to experience anything by myself. As a twin, I not only had someone that looked like me but…

Here, I finally found the sense of belonging — I had never expected to see such a big group of Korean Americans interested in civic and political engagement. This experience immensely inspired me, instilled in me a level of confidence, and encouraged me to step forward into the political field. — Immigrating at the age of 14, I struggled to find my identity in America — I was never “American” enough nor “Korean” enough. Through puberty, I was even more confused and frustrated growing up as a Korean immigrant in America. My signature straight front bangs and broken English made me…